Charter Schools Denounce Proposed Cuts That Would Devastate Schools

Posted by Joe Shahen on 10 / 07 / 2016
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The Northeast Charter Schools Network today denounced the State Department of Education’s proposed cuts to education spending, specifically a proposal to cut $11 million dollars in funding to charter schools, in response to Governor Dannel Malloy’s call for 10 percent reductions from all state agencies.

New Haven, CT – The Northeast Charter Schools Network today denounced the State Department of Education’s proposed cuts to education spending, specifically a proposal to cut $11 million dollars in funding to charter schools, in response to Governor Dannel Malloy’s call for 10 percent reductions from all state agencies.

Northeast Charter Schools Network Connecticut State Director Jeremiah Grace responded by saying, “These proposed cuts would devastate our schools. Children who were promised that they could grow with their school will be denied that opportunity and will be sent back into the school system they once fled. Schools who were told they could add seats to accommodate some of the nearly 6,000 languishing on waiting lists will not be able to do so.

“This proposal is irresponsible and wrong-headed, and would hurt the state’s most vulnerable populations the most. Make no mistake, children of color and children in low-income neighborhoods are the ones who will suffer.

“Just three weeks ago, a judge declared Connecticut’s school funding system broken and unconstitutional. For a moment it seemed as if people had finally taken notice of things we have been saying for years – that we must fix this system and we must provide fairness for all of our state’s public school children.

“Now, our schools – which are already receiving on average $4 thousand less per pupil than their district counterparts – are facing the possibility of being shortchanged even more, in ways that will hurt them and the families they serve. If Connecticut is going to stand for educational justice, these cuts cannot be accepted.

“Connecticut’s public charter schools have been flat-funded for three straight years. These proposed cuts would make an unjust system only worse. This state faces financial challenges but it cannot resolve them by trying to balance a budget on the backs of our children. These cuts should not be approved and we will fight to make sure that they aren’t.”

About the Northeast Charter Schools Network: The Northeast Charter Schools Network is the membership and advocacy organization for the more than 250 charter schools in New York and Connecticut. Its mission is to support and expand high quality charter schools.